Spiritual Living

If the mere presence of truth in our lives has the power to free us from error, addictions and any other form of bondage, then everyone with a Bible sitting on their bookshelf or coffee table should be instantly freed. Jesus didn’t say that “the truth shall make you free,” He said “You shall KNOW the truth, and (knowing) the truth will make you free.”

“Knowing” something is not “thinking” or even “believing” that something is so. Knowing something to be true is based on an inner certainty. The inner certainty comes from within you. Jesus told us that we really didn’t need a teacher to teach us spiritual truth because that is one of the jobs and functions of the Holy Spirit or Presence of God within us.

In this information age we currently live in, many spiritually hungry people have been deceived by denominational hiarchy into believing that the only way they can understand the Bible or spiritual truth, is through years of formal training in seminaries. This simply is a lie and not consistent to Jesus’ teaching whatsoever. You can study truth for years and still be ignorant to the spiritual intent of the AUTHOR….GOD. The way to know what the author of a book has in mind is to spend some time with the author and ask him/her about their original intent in their writings. Some of the most defeated and unhappy people in the world are those who have memorized large quanties of scrirptures but have never disciplined themselves to the harder task of “being still and allowing the Spirit to reveal the true spiritual significance of the passage.” Comparitively speaking, it is a lot easier to reach for a concordance, textbook or pull up a word study on the internet, than it is so take a passage, sit in the silence with a humble listening attitude and say…”Speak to me Lord. Teach me Your intent in this verse, principle,or parable.

Head knowledge alone of spiritual truths is void of power. It is the KNOWING of truth that has the power to remove error, heal, restore and do any other curative work that needs to be done.

Sometimes just knowing the literal translation of truth actually places you in fear, legalism and bondage. It is the spiritual interpretation of scriptures that we are promised will make us free. Spiritual interpretations come from SPIRIT. You must believe that it is possible for God to communicate with you DIRECTLY FROM WITHIN. Without knowing that, you will buy into the deception that understanding comes to only the highly trained professional spiritual leaders. That is mass deception and it is time to wake up to Christ in You… your inner teacher who was, is and always will be the Source of Truth, the Interpreter of truth and your Inner Teacher of truth.

Remember, the truth has no power in itself to make you free! It is your and my individual knowing the truth from within that has the infinite power to free us from any form or shape or error and bondage.

Jesus tells us not to judge by appearance, but to use righteous judgement. What could that mean? In just His statement alone, we see there are two ways of viewing others. One is according to appearance, that is, how they outwardly look…their mannerisms, characteristics and behaviors. The other way is according to “righteous judgement” which means seeing them rightly.

A Spiritual Living  principle is that …There is ONE LIFE and that LIFE is GOD. Another major principle of Spiritual Living is There is ONE LIFE, Many Expressions. That means that God, the One Life expresses Himself as ALL. Omnipresent, a characteristic of God, not only means “everywhere present” but also the “only” presence. Therefore we have the ONE LIFE expressing Himself as us all. The Life of God, being the only life is therefore my life and your life, and everyone else’s life. So, if I am going to see you as you really are, I, through spiritual awareness will see you as a child of God, with God’s life expressing Itself as you. That is “righteous judgement” or judging rightly.

A miraculous thing happens when I see you as you really are, according to your true spiritual identity, not just your human identity. When I see you according to your spiritual identity, I experience you as your true identity…the Life of God manifesting and expressing Himself as  you! I sense God’s presence in, through and as you. This is what Jesus meant when He said….” When you did it to the least of these, you did it unto me.” The reason being the “least of these” is Him, expressing Himself as them. Elsewhere He said…”Love your neighbor as yourself.” That’s because the Spiritual Self of your neighbor is the Spiritual Self of you…that being the ONE SELF…GOD!

Therefore, our spiritual responsibility is not to change other’s behaviors or re-make them in our image, but rather to see them as they really are…a child of God made in His image, and therefore an individualized expression of the ONE LIFE…HIS LIFE.

A second miracle occurs…As we see others as they really are, they begin to see us as we really are. All of mankind cries out…”Please see past my faults and recognize me for who I really am.” Out of love, we answer that cry and greet each other with the inner silent awareness…The Christ In Me Beholds The Christ In You. And so it is, and so it will be.

The spiritual life is a journey. It begins with the realization that “there has to be something more.” Something more to life than getting up, going to work, coming home, going to bed, just to wake up tomorrow and repeat the same process. Sometimes boredom and dissatisfaction are the catalysts which launch us on our spiritual journey.

In Spiritual Living, our journey has a specific destination and that is to make contact with God, to actually experience the Presence of God within. Reading books, memorizing scripture and discussing spiritual issues with others may be a means to an end but by now means is the end or destination. The final destination is experiencing God’s presence first hand. You can read about the benefits of a balanced diet of carbohydrates, proteins and minerals but knowledge of food will not satisfy your hunger nor nourish you. Eventually you must taste and ingest the food in order to satisfy your hunger. The same is true with water. We can know all about the chemical interaction of H2O and still die of thirst. Water has to be taken into our system and absorbed before we will get the intended benefits. So it is with the Presence of God. In order to quench our spiritual thirst and hunger, the Presence of God must be experience within.

Jesus tells us that the Kingdom of God is within us. Scriptures tell us to “Be still and know that I am God.” Eventually we must lay the books down, get quiet, go within, and listen. For most of us, the Presence of God announces Itself as a feeling, a sensing and/or an inner knowing. However the Spirit of God chooses to communicate with you will be the perfect way for you. Do not try to manufacture the experience or outline the way you want to experience His presence. Just be open and trust that the Presence will make Itself known to you in the right way, and at the right time.

Enjoy the journey but keep the destination in mind. Don’t allow knowledge, church membership or religious business to become a substitute for the real thing…knowing God first hand. It is possible and highly probable for you to reach the spiritual destination of knowing God if you will decide to settle for nothing less.

You can view February’s newsletter here.